In today's commerce, merchants often utilize an array of different point-of-sale (POS) devices, including mobile POS devices. Merchants may use these mobile POS devices to engage in transactions with customers at different locations. For instance, a waiter of a restaurant may use a mobile POS device to take and process customers' orders for food and drinks. In another example, a bartender may use a mobile POS device to charge a customer for items purchased over the course of a visit by the customer.
In some instances, the customers may wish to pay for items together and/or pay for items purchased over the course of a visit without paying multiple times. For example, multiple customers may wish to divide the check for a tab at a bar. In such instances, the merchant may have to perform multiple transactions and manually split the total in various ways. Further, as customers request additional items, the merchant's exposure to loss caused by non-payment on the open tab increases. On the other hand, constantly authorizing payment instruments of the customers as the tab grows may result in the merchant paying additional transaction fees, thereby reducing profits. These issues may cause errors, delay, inconvenience and loss of revenue.